Reader Hans Landel is thiiis close to having an answer to his login items question. Let’s push him over the edge to understanding. He writes:
I would like to start my Mac and have certain files open when it boots up. I already have programs that start on start-up/log-in, such as my calendar and e-mail programs (as per the Accounts system preference), but how can I have certain files also open–a Word document, for example–ready for me to work on?
Hans, when you choose System Preferences from the Apple menu and choose the Accounts system preference, you see how the tab next to Password readers Login Items? Items is the key word here. If Apple had meant Applications, Utilities, or Doohickies, it would have said so (the folks who work there are very picky about these things).
If you’d like particular documents to open at startup, click the Login Items tab and drag those documents into the list. When you next log into your account, the documents will open in the application associated with them.